In line with BLC Bank’s mission to support Small and Medium Enterprises (SMEs) & the Women’s Market, and to encourage entrepreneurship in the region, the Brilliant Lebanese Awards was launched in 2012 as the 1st Lebanese Banking Awards in Lebanon.

The Brilliant Lebanese Awards is designed to acknowledge and honor entrepreneurs who have achieved excellence and demonstrated personal commitment to their business and community. These awards are part of the Bank’s promise to provide SMEs and women entrepreneurs with consultancy, learning & development opportunities, access to markets and nationwide exposure, in addition to financing.

More than 750 entrepreneurs have participated in the Brilliant Lebanese Awards since its inception in 2012, noting that these Awards are open to all Lebanese businesses and not limited to BLC Bank clients.

Recognition & Exposure
Selected finalists will take part in TV interviews, a 90-minute Awards ceremony broadcast live on LBCI including a full report about their business. Finalists will also get no less than two months of social media coverage on all BLC Bank and We Initiative platforms.

Learning & Development
Finalists will attend an in-depth seminar on Digital & Inbound Marketing to learn how to succeed online and maximize exposure.

Reassessment
Applying to the Awards will also grant finalists the opportunity to take a step back and reassess their business’ vision and strategy.

Coaching & Mentoring
Finalists will receive valuable coaching and advice from the nine professional jury members along with opportunities to grow their business.

Financial Reward
The winners of the Business of the Year and Woman Entrepreneur of the Year categories will receive, in addition to all the above, a wider media exposure following their announcement.
Each winner will receive a USD 30,000 cash prize.
As for the winner of the People’s Choice Award, s/he will walk away with a cash prize of USD 5,000.

Categories

Business of the Year Award
The Business of the Year Award is intended for profitable businesses with differentiated products or services, a sustainable and scalable business model and a commitment to social responsibility.

Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award
The Woman Entrepreneur of the Year Award is intended for women-led (50% + 1 share owned by women), profitable businesses with differentiated products or services, a sustainable and scalable business model with commitment to social responsibility.

People’s Choice Award
The finalists of the two categories combined will participate in an online competition whereby the public will be given the opportunity to elect the recipient of the People’s Choice Award.

Tech Innovation of the Year
Any business Women or Men owned that falls under the following definition:
“Any business based on digital and/or innovative technologies as its core business” this includes, but is not limited to: Businesses having developed their own IP (Intellectual Property), Patent, algorithm, and businesses based on new technologies or digital.

Process

All applications received undergo a pre-selection process by the Brilliant Lebanese Awards Committee according to the four criteria mentioned below, to select 6 finalists for each of the two categories: the “Business of the year” and “Woman Entrepreneur of the Year”.

Their deliberations consist of a 15-minute presentation about their businesses structured according to the below mentioned criteria, followed by a 20-minute Q&A and 10 Minutes coaching and advice by the jury experts.

Based on the deliberations, jury members will grade the finalists live during the award ceremony and the winners will be announced accordingly.

Selection Criteria

Four criteria are taken into consideration for the evaluation and the pre-selection of the finalists:

Creativity
30% for the project’s idea and concept as well as its uniqueness and differentiation on the market.

Financials
30% for the profitability and growth of the business and the economic opportunities created.

Sustainability & Scalability
25% for the development strategy of the business, its governance structure and other aspects indicating its chances of scalability, long-term success and future growth.

Corporate Social Responsibility
15% for the social opportunities created and the impact of the business on the environment and society in terms of jobs created and diversity and inclusion in its employment structure.

To apply to the Brilliant Lebanese Awards, businesses should meet the below conditions:

The participant:
Each participant may only apply to one of the categories and submit one business. Multiple businesses will not be accepted and will result in the disqualification of the participant.

The business must be:

A for-profit business

Original; meaning a new concept, that is not a buy-back, a copy of an existing business concept, an off-shoot or a subsidiary of an existing business

Operational for at least two financial years

With an annual turnover not exceeding USD 5,000,000

Registered in the Lebanese Commercial Register

Must be owned, at least 50% +1 share, by Lebanese entrepreneurs

Must not have an activity listed in the Brilliant Lebanese Awards Exclusion List

Any BLC Bank employee or anyone professionally connected to the Brilliant Lebanese Awards is not eligible to enter the Awards. BLC Bank reserves the right to verify the eligibility of all participants.

Any participant having won prior business awards is not eligible to enter the Awards.

Each participant shall provide and maintain an active email address throughout the Awards period.

Participants must be more than 18 years old, on the day of submission of the application form;